New Uilleann Piper from Singapore

Uilleann Pipes
1

Hi to all,

Well, i’ve been reading from this forum for the past few months and was thinking it was time to register as a user.
I’d noticed a large number of very constructive and professional discussions happening here and i’m honoured now to be part of the family.
Just received my practice set today from an Australian maker. To be honest, i’d never seen a uilleann piper performed infront of me nor touched the uilleann pipes until today. And, I think I must be the only uilleann piper here.
Coming back to pipes; All notes on the 1st octave sounded fine and in tune except i’m rather confused and puzzled if a lot of strength is needed to hit the 2nd octave? I was really afraid that I would burst the bag if I were to squeeze it harder. But I would like to see it as meself being very new to this instrument. Anybody with similar experience who are willing to share are welcomed.
And, any of you fellow pipers who are dropping by Singapore can just drop me a mail and i’ll be very glad to bring you guys around!

Cowan
a.k.a Jenson

2

Cowan,
Welcome to C&F

Do you have the tapes from NPU? these are most valuable for the isolated piper.

Who is your pipemaker? Chances are the reed is set for best performance and not ease of play. Continue to practice the first octave and see if the reed eases up in a 2-3 weeks.

3

Welcome to the world of Uillleann Piping. To answer your question, the second octave should not be very difficult to get to. Once you learn more about piping you can decide what works for you, a barely harder squeeze to hit the second octave or a slightly harder squeeze to hit the second octave. Some people prefer an even harder reed, where it’s quite a hard squeeze to get the second octave. I generally play with my reed set so a very light touch jumps to the second octave, though not so light that I’m jumping to the second octave when I’m playing with drones on. It’s all a balance in the long run. It may take your reed a few weeks of playing to set in, but if it doesn’t lighten up after that, here are some things you can do:

What it comes down to, more likely than not, is how your reed is set. As the set came from Australia and is adjusting to your climate in Singapore, I would guess the lips on your reed have opened more than they were originally set at in Australia. I’d say try to find a local Uilleann Piper to help you set your reed up, but it sounds as though there aren’t many there.

If you’re feeling brave, you can adjust your reed yourself. At first I would just try gently squeezing the lips together with your fingers a few times. Then test it out. If that doesn’t work, then you may need to adjust the bridle/collar. There are two kinds.

One is used on a reed that has a slight taper and is slid up or down. The further up you slide it, the more open your lips will become, so you will want to slide it slightly down to close your lips slightly.

The other kind of collar/bridle is stationary, and it will require you to squeeze the bridle (on the flat, wide sides of the reed)to close the lips. Best to start off squeezing the bridle/collar with your fingers. Sometimes all you need is a very slight adjustment. If this doesn’t show any improvement, use pliers very, very gently. Be very gentle, or you may end up with a broken reed.

This all assumes that your reed was well made and is good for your set. Can you tell us who made your australian pipe set?

Dionys


[ This Message was edited by: Dionys on 2002-11-11 12:38 ]

4

Dear Tony and Dionys,

Seems to me that you guys are very keen to know my pipe-maker. Well, he’s Adrian Jefferies from Queensland. I think this man deserves the credit for the good pipes i’d received. He’s patient and efficient in attending to all my queries too.

The chanter is made from African Black with chrome-plated brass ferrules. I don’t think amateurs like us would be able to tell the difference when compared with nickle-silver or sterling-silver ferrules.

I’ll try the methods offered by you guys tomorrow cos it’s way pass midnight here. By the way, i don’t think i’ll be able to get help other than from this forum cos i’m really really an ‘isolated piper’. Did checked with Na Piobairi Uilleann and they told me that the nearest piper would be in Aus and New Zealand.

Thanks for replying!
Cowan

5

Cowan,
Good going… Adrian Jefferies is a well respected pipemaker, much luck with your set. Persist a bit longer to see if the reed softens naturally.
The only piper I can think anywhere near you is Jun in Japan. Try this link:
http://www.mars.dti.ne.jp/~junf/indexe.html

6

Adrian is very well respected, and I think Tony and I were both a little concerned you may have bought from a different pipemaker who shall rename nameless.

Do wait the week or two to see if your reed softens up before making adjustments. Otherwise you’ll just end up having to re-adjust it once it is broken in. Practice your scales and getting a clean, clear, unwavering tone for a while before you worry overmuch about getting into the second octave, anyhow.


Dionys

7

Congrats on your new set, and also on having the gumption to learn pipes on your own! Been there done that.

8

Janice,
I consider learning pipes an ongoing process, at any level.

Been there, still doing that.

9

Cowan…to make a little more sense out of the pressure needed for the 2nd octave, keep this in mind: To begin, and for the most part, keep the chanter resting on the knee, sealing off any air leaks. Cover all finger holes and apply light to medium pressure on the bag.

At this point no sound, and no air, should escape from the chanter (or from the bag or bellows). Air is wanting out. Pressure is felt at the finger holes. Lift one finger, or two, per note, depending on the note desired, and you should get the lower octave.

I’ve seen beginners play all the notes in the lower octave, with the chanter off the knee, and it sounds kinda okay (out of tune), but that’s not really the way to do it. And, they could never get the upper actave that way, with a normal reed.

All air pressure comes out of one finger hole only to get into the 2nd octave. This triggers the reed into a double vibration. After the 2nd is achieved, you can often get other notes within that octave (A and above), with more than one finger lifted, and the reed will stay in the double vibration, depending on pressure.

The trick of the lifetime is the ability to keep or change the reed in, or into, a single or double vibration mode.

While playing the lower octave (with steady pressure), if you only lift one finger (the index) the upper G will automatically sound. If you lift two fingers (index and middle) only the lower octave will sound. If the upper G doesn’t automatically sound, your reed is usually too stiff, or opened up to much at the lips, depending on the climate. If it goes into the upper octave too easy, the lips are too thin or the reed is not opened up enough.

Lifting the chanter slightly, at the same time you lift the middle finger of the lower hand (upper F#), will produce the “barking” effect, and will encourage the reed into a double vibration.

For a while, the upper E, F# and G are the only notes that will get you into the upper octave. A (and above) is usually difficult to get into until you are already up in the area. That will come later with “popping.” But, some reeds have trouble with a clear upper E.

Never get the reed wet, nor stick it in your mouth. I’ve actually seen people do this who didn’t understand dry reeds too well.

10

Dear fellow pipers,

T’is my day 2 of piping. Did manage to figure out what Tony and Dionys had suggested.
As for the Australian pipe-maker thingy, I believe I understand Dionys’s concern; Me did heard of an Oz Pipe-maker with a negative reputation. Well we shall not mention his name here due to sensitiveness, but we know who he is;).
While practising just now, I was suddenly enlightened by a ?? “higher source” :astonished:
Strangely, lesser strength was needed today to achieve notes all the way to high G. Guess the reeds are starting to function well on that.
Thanks for the posts guys. You’ve all been kind and encouraging!

Cowan
“isolated Uilleann Piper in South-east Asian”:wink:

11

Cowan is the maiden name of one of the doctors I work with…she’s from Co Fermanagh.

Boyd.

12

Well Boyd,

Is the name ‘Cowan’ common in Ireland? If i’m not mistaken, it’s a gaelic name. Don’t know what form of gaelic it’s from. Cowan is my English name; I’m a Singaporean Chinese. Everyone here has got an English name (easy to call i guess) even though you do find more chinese, malays, indians and eurasians here, FYI :wink:

Cowan
a.k.a Jenson

13

Yes, I think there are a good few Cowans in the phone book, alright.
There are those who could tell you more, but I’m afraid the history of surnames is not a thing I know a lot about.

Boyd

14

Cowan…

http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~irishancestors/Surnames/Surnames%20in%20Ireland/ClarkeMcCready/Cowan.html

15

Dear Pipers,

Some help needed here. Do the notes sound sharper if slightly more force is applied on the bag? And why can the back D sound so different when i releases pressure on bag to get the bellows working?

Thanks!
Cowan

16

Courage, Cowan dear friend. I’m breathless in admiration at anuyone trying to tackle the pipes without a local psychosocial support group.

You share a surname with the current Irish Minister for Foreign Afairs, tipped to succeed as Prime Minister whenever the knives come out for the current incumbent.

Just for added entertainment, the Minister, Brian Cowen (slightly different spelling, but that’s not unusual), is known to his detractors as “Biffo”, i.e. the Big Ignorant F***er from Offaly!

17

Cowan..you are making good progress! Learning to operate the bellows smoothly, while not depleting air in the bag too much, just comes with practice…like swimming.

Notes sounding sharper, with increased pressure, depends. Usually, yes…you are right. But weather conditions, reeds (stiffness and opening), chanters, and the particular note…all can vary. The only REAL stable notes on mine are G and low D in the lower octave. Difference in pressure doesn’t change them at all. The rest lower slightly with decreased pressure. If the pitch lowers or raises too much…something is wrong and the instrument will probably be too loud. I can get my back (thumb note) D to actually raise in pitch as I lower pressure down to nothing in the bag.

Strive for basic and CONSTANT medium pressure…which only comes with practice.

18

Hi all,

Thank you so much for the encouragement!
Well into the fifth day of piping and i suspect i’m starting to encounter the ‘reed’ problem.

All notes sound pretty in tune; Bottom D, Low G, back D, high E are very in tune. Rest of the notes are fine. Real problem sets in when playing high A and onwards; high A sounds sharp, high B is very sharp while fingering for high C went all the way to hit high D exactly arrg…:roll:

I know i might sound very impatient for a very new piper but just want to make sure all notes sound alright.

Please help :frowning:

Thanks.
Cowan